


The Affairs of Men

by MrToddWilkins



Series: 1961:A Space Odyssey (and tales from that world) [6]
Category: For Better or For Worse (Comics), NCIS, Political RPF - US 20th c., Sweet Valley High - Francine Pascal, Sweet Valley University - Francine Pascal
Genre: Airforceproud95 References, Alternate History, BAMF April Dawson, BAMF Maria Santelli, BAMF Rhetta Blum, F/M, Good Brooke Dennis, Good Jethro Gibbs, Good Ziva David, Jethro Gibbs Leaves NCIS Team, Leon Vance Bashing - just a little bit but he gets better, NCIS - Freeform, Police Procedural, Thriller, Tobias Fornell Bashing, a bit of a conspiracy, dirt bikes, even though she’s like 17 and doesn’t really appear in this, federal government bashing, good Eli David, references to things that haven’t happened yet in my main story
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-06-16
Updated: 2020-06-16
Packaged: 2021-03-04 06:16:15
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 3
Words: 1,351
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24728830
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MrToddWilkins/pseuds/MrToddWilkins
Relationships: April Dawson/Michael Harris, Grace Fowler/Ned Dorneget, Maria Santelli/Teddy Collins, Michael Patterson/Deanna Sobinski, Mike McAllery/Jessica Wakefield, Olivia Davidson/Winston Egbert, Tony DiNozzo/Rhetta Blum, Winston Egbert & Brooke Dennis
Series: 1961:A Space Odyssey (and tales from that world) [6]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1682887





	1. Epigraph

_The world is just a barrel-organ which the Lord God turns Himself. We all have to dance to the tune which is already on the drum_

_\- Reinhard Heydrich_


	2. Prologue

_**December 5,1996** _

_**4:15 a.m.** _

The night warder at the Sweet Valley police and fire station looked up blearily when he heard a knock on the door. Going over to the door,he opened it with a heavy iron key. On the front step stood a tall man,young,with rather sandy hair and a wry facial expression. He wore a vest over a T-shirt reading THE PHANTASTIC PHILLIES DO L.A ‘84. 

”Can I help you?”

”Who are you?”

”Joey Harrington,warder of this place on the night shift.”

”Theodore Collins. I’m here to.........interrogate prisoner 582,if he’s awake.”

”Marin? Yeah. He’ll be arraigned on Wednesday. Novak!”, he barked to someone on the building. “Take this guy in to see Marin! If he’s still awake!”

————

Shortly,a tall guy with a blonde mohawk appeared and motioned Teddy to follow him. Teddy followed him through the palatially clean warren of corridors comprising the station. Above them shone clear,cold lighting,like what you would see in some government building. The light brought out the gaunt hollowness in Teddy’s eyes,making him look like he hadn’t slept in a few nights. He hadn’t. With every long step he took to keep up with this guy Teddy felt the need to sleep.

 _Not until you’ve properly confronted him,_ Teddy reminded himself. _Not until there’s been justice for Tony._

 _  
_ It seemed when he got to the cell that Dorneget had narrowly beat him. The naval agent was leaving as Teddy arrived.

”You’ve got 15 minutes to say your say,Collins”, said Dan Novak,father of Teddy’s classmate Shelly. “Any more and I come running. Bastard’s still dangerous,you know.”

Teddy nodded and took a deep,ragged breath.

————-

Teddy stared at Marin angrily through the plexiglass window separating them. The criminal was glaring at him like he thought that he would be intimidated:it would have been comical if Teddy wasn’t so torn up inside by this decision to get in one final say. If he hadn’t been intimidated by Marin when there was nothing between them but air, why in the hell would he be afraid of him now that he was safely behind bars?

“This isn’t about you, and I have no interest in what you have to say. So you might as well keep your mouth shut.” Teddy said to the angry man gritting her teeth at him. When he went to speak, he held up his hand.

“You know, I would love to say I don’t hate you,John Marin,but it would be a huge lie. I am not sure I have ever hated anyone more than I hate you. But, along with that I pity you. I pity you because you can’t see yourself for the addled scum you are,like a stain on the toilet bowl of existence. You’re a foul fucking bastard,who’s evaded capture for nearly 20 years. That ended yesterday. You tried to hurt my family. Didn’t work. You tried to hurt me. Didn’t work. You tried to hurt Sweet Valley. _Didn’t fuckin’ WORK,did it?”_

Teddy’s voice had risen to a high imitation of a scream. In the Plexiglass,he saw his face distort into an angry grimace,like some eldritch being out of one of the books on the Lovecraft shelf his dad so loved to read from. He took a few moments to recover his voice.

”I think the big difference between us,Marin, is that frankly I care about myself,the people I love,the town I live in. You on the other hand, I don’t think you even care about yourself, and you certainly don’t care about anyone else.

You are so goddamned cold hearted that you haven’t the first clue on how to REALLY emotionally connect to another human being. You think you’re some kind of master assassin who can be feared by all. The truth is you’re just a cold fish who’s about as attractive as a dead trout that’s been laying in the sun for two days. Physically you may be handsome:hell,I suppose that at one time I thought you were sexy, but your personality makes you ugly as sin. You’re like that thing that scares little kids on sight:the bogeyman of childish myth.

You’re fucking pathetic. You had so many opportunities to learn and grow, not just as an agent, but as a human being. Instead you threw them all away by sticking your head in the sand insisting that your precious MCIS was the be all that end all. You’re so miserable that you gain joy in ruining other people’s lives, and that has got to be one of the most pathetic things in existence. I hate to break it to you, but normal,well adjusted people don’t do that.

Even as we speak,Congress prepares to defund the hateful alphabet agencies that have funded your work in their name. Their plots to establish a security state have been foiled with a capital F. Here you sit, you worthless asshole, in a cell waiting to be sentenced for treason among other things. You’re not only going to jail, but you’re going to die there. That is,if you aren’t killed for your actions. Now I’m usually not a religious guy,but I hope you,and the perpetrators of that system,all rot in the deepest pits of Cocytus,next to Satan’s frozen ass. Fuck you, John Marin. Fuck you to hell, and I hope from here on out it’s a damned painful journey. Goodbye forever.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Don’t worry:Tony’s not dead.


	3. Six months earlier...........

_**June 30,1996** _

The day Teddy Collins was to wed Maria Santelli,the Sun rose into a clear blue sky,with a few puffy clouds on the horizon. Such was typical of early summer days in Sweet Valley,where (to expand upon an adage) the weather was perfect,the women beautiful and strong,the men handsome and strong,and all the children above average. 

Teddy had been engaged to Maria pretty much since their graduation from Sweet Valley High two years earlier,though they had only made it formal at last year's Thanksgiving dinner with the Santellis. Teddy himself was the son of Roger Collins,who taught English to 10th through 12th graders at SVH,coached the school's new bowling team,and advised the kids working on the school newspaper,The Oracle. Roger's first marriage had been to Teddy's mom,the former May Stillwater,and that marriage had dissolved in Teddy's youth after May had developed a drinking problem. When Teddy was in first grade,Roger had married Adele Rollins,a young widow from Big Mesa whom he had known in school. Roger had become a good stepfather to Adele's two children,Enid and Carter,and had given her a daughter named Lily,who was now eleven years old:a cute,opinionated girl who was following in the footsteps of her heroine Claire Middleton by trying out for the junior football team.

Maria was the older daughter of Peter Santelli,the doughty old Mayor of Sweet Valley,who was as libertarian as they came. Having been raised in a politically minded household (her dad having unsuccessfully run for the California state Senate when she was a toddler),Maria was one of the smartest people in her class,having ranked fourth in said class,behind only Robbie Hendricks,Elizabeth Wakefield,and Olivia Davidson. She had been at various times a school reporter,class secretary,girls' basketball player,cheerleader,and homecoming queen both their junior high years. Her sister Dianne would be the flower girl,scattering lily petals up and down the outdoor aisle, as this would be a backyard wedding.

Teddy heard a distant knock on the door. "Come in."  
His father entered his room,pushing aside Teddy's old model of an F-15 fighter jet.   
"I just wanted to make sure you're ready for today."  
"How's Maria holding up?"  
"Pretty well. She'll be wanting to see you."


End file.
